550 Kettlercise Challenge

During 2014 Kettlercise instructors Karl and Simon are participating in a team challenge. Once a month during a kettlercise class the class will be split into 2 teams. Starting at the same time each team (1 with Karl leading and 1 with Simon leading) will perform 10 different kettlebell exercises starting with 100 reps and reducing by 10 every time the exercise changes. For example 100 Squat to Press, 90 rotational Lunges, 80 Cleans etc. until we are down to 10. The first team to all finish all exercises and reps (550) wins. There will be a leader board over the year to see which team will prevail during 2014. This is a simple but great idea to boost class participation and get a buzz around the club with your members. Also it adds a friendly competitive edge for your members to push themselves and achieve better results. No matter what we say we all have a little competitive edge inside us all and a fun simple idea such as above might just bring it out and push us on to that next level of fitness.

Attitudes Towards Training

The world of fitness is varied and there are good points, bad points and plain confusing points. This week I want to address attitudes towards training, recently I have heard some very confusing statements by people in regards to their training, such as, ‘how do I lose weight with the least effort?’ ‘I don’t want to train like that because I will get really sweaty’ ‘I don’t do those lifts they are too difficult’ ‘I am not very good at that so i never train it’ and so on…

A large percentage of people who go to the gym will do the same thing day in and day out, the same thing for months and years, with little motivation, little energy, no thought to adding new elements, people today seem to do what they think they know and little else, hardly pushing themselves, never working up a sweat, no increase in weight, intensity, pace or recovery, just same old different day.

Firstly the simplest way I can put it is ‘if it doesn't challenge you, it doesn't change you!’ training should challenge your abilities, you should work, sweat, push hard, dig deep and have to power your way through. Recently I did circuit based training on my weaknesses, I chose for things I am not great on and put them into a chain focusing on my technique, strength and endurance.  You won’t lose weight sticking to the same pace, you won’t get fitter doing the same few exercises with huge amounts of rest, you won’t get bigger lifting the same weight for the same reps, you will simply plateau.

There are so many types of training, so many variations and so much to master, there are a multitude of lifts, fitness and endurance training methods, lifting techniques, skill and agility building, flexibility and all round conditioning methods, so try them, bring back some excitement to your training and if you’re not sure where to start then find a trainer, we have a personal training team here at Breadsall Priory, we all have various backgrounds and experiences with fitness and our individual training methods vary and complement one another, we offer one to one training, group classes, inductions, personal programs and not to mention we are always happy to answer your health and fitness questions, our training team also work on the reception so don’t be scared to have a quick chat about your training or what new training we are doing, fitness is our career, our passion and we love the opportunity to talk about fitness and jump at the opportunity to train. So let’s reignite some passion and bring back that get up and go, in short, let’s get back in the gym and let’s smash it!

My Weakness Workout

30 wall balls
20 double unders
10 pull ups
5 muscle ups

For 5 rounds.



Karl O'Sullivan

Don’t forget to train your legs guys

Nowadays training legs doesn’t have the same appeal as say training your chest or biceps does to most guys, maybe due to the fact that you don’t see that instant pump you would do training biceps and the fact that training legs can cause DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness). Meaning the next couple of days can be reasonably painful to walk. However legs are actually the most important muscle to train as they are the largest muscle group and training them will increase the release of growth hormone throughout the entire body. Not only will it stop you looking completely out of proportion but having strong legs helps you generate more power performing upper body exercises. If you aren’t familiar with that many legs exercises the guys here at Breadsall Priory can give you that much needed advice on how to build strong legs, this should help to avoid looking like our friend pictured just above here. We also have a Legs Bums And Tums class starting in January so feel free to book in and come along. Corey Hodgkinson

It Is The Season!

Christmas is coming up soon! Which means a few things, adverts, presents, stock piling of the kitchen and of course, the Christmas parties, which means drink, lots of drink. Now I have no intention and urging you to be on the wagon this Christmas, after all it is the season to drink and be merry, but I will outline a few drinking facts and maybe that will encourage more reserved drinking or a rethink of your regular training. On a typical British night out it is not seen as unbelievable to consume anything in the way of, a bottle of champagne or brandy, ten bottles of beer, eight doubled up spirits or bomb upon bomb of the Jager.

The drink	Alcohol	Workout
Champagne	11%	3 hours dancing
A bottle of brandy	40%	4 hours cycling
10 bottles of larger	5.1%	1.5 hours playing squash
8 gin & tonics (doubles)	37.5%	2 hours football
6 Jagerbombs	35%	1 hour of rowing

So in short if you have parties lined up this merry season, then gear your training towards that high intensity calorie burn and remember, drink responsibly and be merry!
 

 

Exercise and Mental Well Being

It has long been known that regular exercise is good for our physical health. It can reduce the risk of cancer, heart disease and strokes.

In recent years, studies have shown that regular physical activity also has benefits for mental health. Exercise can help people recover from depression and prevent them from becoming depressed in the first place.

Dr Alan Cohen, a GP with a special interest in mental health, says that when people get depressed or anxious, they often feel they're not in control of their lives.

“Exercise gives them back control of their bodies and this is often the first step to feeling in control of other events,” he says.

Anyone with depression can benefit from doing regular exercise, but it's especially useful for people with mild depression.

“Any type of exercise is useful as long as it suits you and you do enough of it,” says Dr Cohen. “Exercise should be something you enjoy. Otherwise it will be hard to find the motivation to do it regularly.”

What Are the Psychological Benefits of Exercise With Depression?

Improved self-esteem is a key psychological benefit of regular physical activity. When you exercise, your body releases chemicals called endorphins. These endorphins interact with the receptors in your brain that reduce your perception of pain.

Endorphins also trigger a positive feeling in the body, similar to that of morphine. For example, the feeling that follows a run or workout is often described as "euphoric." That feeling, known as a "runner's high," can be accompanied by a positive and energizing outlook on life.

Endorphins act as an analgesic, which means they diminish the perception of pain. They also act as sedatives. They are manufactured in your brain, spinal cord, and many other parts of your body and are released in response to brain chemicals called neurotransmitters. The neuron receptors endorphins bind to are the same ones that bind some pain medicines. However, unlike with morphine, the activation of these receptors by the body's endorphins does not lead to addiction or dependence.

Regular exercise has been proven to:

·         Reduce stress

·         Ward off anxiety and feelings of depression

·         Boost self-esteem

·         Improve sleep

Exercise also has these added health benefits:

·         It strengthens your heart.

·         It increases energy levels.

·         It lowers blood pressure.

·         It improves muscle tone and strength.

·         It strengthens and builds bones.

·         It helps reduce body fat.

·         It makes you look fit and healthy.

In the U.K. mental health issues are often over looked, however recently more effort is being made to address mental health and a large focus is on the openess of the subject and effect treatments, fitness and being physically active continues to show a strong correlation in the prevention, treatment and understanding of mental health and well being. Remember fitness isnt just being strong and fast, it reaches much further into a persons social and mental development and well being.

Metafit

The Metafit™ bodyweight training system is an effective and simple tool for to maximise results. To burn fat you need to change the resting metabolism, work big muscle groups with high intensity intervals and get quick results for your clients and Metafit does all three Created by a former Royal Marine Commando and a national gymnast Metafit™ combines traditional bodyweight exercises with the latest interval and Tabata techniques to set the metabolism on fire! No expensive kit required for this workout just hard work and dedication. Corey one of our trainings will soon be getting qualified to deliver this unique style of teaching and delivering it here at Breadsall Priory Leisure club. The training is in December so get along to one of Corey sessions over the festive period and try it out for yourself. Keep an eye out for Corey’s blog to see how the training went and what to expect when we launch our new class. Metafit will seriously change your body!

Have You Ever Tried Pilates?

• 
  The Pilates method is essentially a mind-body centering technique that emphasises the importance of beginning movement from a central core of stability, namely the lumbo-pelvic region. The aim is to concentrate in precision of movement, awareness of breath control and a continued flowing movement. When this is mastered the exerciser will be able to alter abnormal patterns of movement allowing it to be carried over into daily function, therefore decreasing chance of injury.

  
  

  
  

  
  

  
  

  
  

  
  

  
  

  Pilates was created by Joseph Humbertus Pilates who was born in Germany in 1880. When WW1 broke out Joe was interned as a POW in Lancaster and later moved to the Isle of Man. Whilst there he trained as an orderly in the hospital and became increasingly appalled to see so many ill people in stuck in their beds. He devised a gentle exercise regime for patients, it quickly became evident that those practicing Joe’s exercises were improving faster.
• Joe believed that injuries were caused by imbalances in the body and habitual patterns of movement. He observed that when a person had a weakness or maligned area, that person overcompensated or overdeveloped another area to achieve functional movement. Thus, Joe found it critical to correct the misalignment and to re-educate the body to prevent recurrence. A belief that 50 years later is being hailed as the phenomenon of the muscle imbalance theories of physiotherapists today. Much Physiotherapeutic effort is devoted to correcting muscle imbalances in the lumbar spine and peripheral joints. Pilates is a great tool to help correct these imbalances which can lead common symptoms such as chronic lower back pain. Over Joe’s lifetime he perfected his Pilates method which is today taught in two categories, matwork and machine based work. Matwork is a combination of the original 34 pilates exercises Joe developed which consist of strength, mobility and stretching. Machine based Pilates takes the concepts of matwork into a spring loaded resistance machines designed originally by Joe himself.

  Are you now interested in trying Pilates?

  Matwork Pilates is taught at Breadsall Priory Leisure Club just check out our studio timetable and book into a class. If you are interested in one to one tuition just ask for Zoe at the leisure desk.

  

One Move, Full Workout

The latest question asked to me was one regarding a time efficient workout, many people are pressed for time and can’t really spend an hour or two in the gym, so I was asked for a super quick and worthwhile routine and to be honest I thought immediately there is a single move that is a great workout in itself, the front squat shoulder press, also known in Crossfit circles as a ‘thruster’.

This exercise incorporates a front squat with a shoulder press, you can use a barbell or a pair of dumbells . Take the weight up to the level of your shoulder, keep your chest lifted and your back straight, sink into a squat, aiming for hip crease to drop below knee crease, keep the heels flat on the floor, keeping your back straight drive up through your heels keeping your core strong as you reach a full standing position press the weight directly over your head, then drop the weight back down to upper chest level and quickly and smoothly repeat the squat and press movement.

This exercise incorporates so many muscles that it gives a great workout, incorporating strength, stamina and focusing on the development of lean functional muscle. Also by taking the weight at the front of the body (anterior) and as opposed to on the shoulders carry the weight on the back (posterior) it promotes better alignment of the spine and puts a greater emphasis on the abdominals, giving a great abdominal workout throughout the lift and press.

This move can be put very easily into a great interval workout, 300 meter row 20 Thrusters, hit 8 intervals with strong technique, go for time and hit the showers. Quick, functional and efficient, time in the gym minimal, benefits maximum!

-Karl O’Sullivan, Personal Trainer and Group Fitness Instructor.

Stretch and Recover

If you suffer from chronic lower back pain it is proven that exercise can help. Training your core muscles will build up strength to help prevent lower back pain and support you in all movements. At Breadsall Priory Leisure club we offer many classes that can help you to improve your core stability such as: Yoga, Pilates, Body Sculpt and Yogalates. There's more to Pilates than developing "strong abs" or "core strength". Pilates is an exercise system that focuses on stretching and strengthening the whole body to improve balance, muscle-strength, flexibility and posture. It was created by German-born Joseph Pilates in the early 1900s and incorporates elements of yoga, martial arts and Western forms of exercise. Initially adopted by professional dancers in the US as an effective form of recovery after injury, Pilates has steadily grown in popularity around the world, and includes celebrity fans such as Madonna and Jennifer Aniston.

Gym Myths by Karl O'Sullivan

We’ve all heard gym myths, those little pearls of wisdom passed down from one big guy at the gym to another not so big guy, such as you have to separate muscle groups to get big, cardio is for losing weight lifting is for building, you need fat to turn into muscle and so on, gym myths can be hilarious, my current favourite is ‘as you get older your fitness drops and you gain weight’ this theory that as you get older you get fat and that’s just the way it is, is a complete myth and absurdity. Let’s look at it objectively, all people, that is humans are animals, we may have 3D televisions and cool phone apps but we are still animals and part of the animal kingdom, now keeping that in mind what other animal on the whole planet gets fatter as it gets older? What creature has the genetics which say as you get older you are going to be fat? …that’s right, not a one, there is no animal or any unavoidable reason that’s says you will get fat and overweight just because you get older. It is true as you get older your metabolic rate will drop and your level of cardiovascular fitness will see a decrease, but a few tweaks in life style and diet will tackle the metabolic rate issue and cardiovascular fitness peaks around your early forties and then doesn’t see a significant drop until you are well in your seventies! Now that is an amazing thing, the human body is meant to stay active and healthy as we get older and with modern science and health care we can all look forward to longer, healthier and more active lives. The few things to remember are as you get older and wiser you need to train smarter not necessarily harder, when you’re young you can lift big and push yourself to high intensities, put as you get older you need to allow more time for your active recovery and maintenance, being sure to take time to maintain flexibility, good posture and overall function. Also except that you can’t burn the candle at both ends and eat lots of junk food and stay slim, the metabolic rate as you get older can’t handle that kind of life style, so its making the smart choices, eating more natural and clean, cutting back on unnecessary indulgences, that’s not to say you can’t treat yourself to a glass of wine and a dessert, but maybe don’t get trapped in the student mind set of several bottles and then an all you can eat at the local take away. I truly believe the time invested in your health and fitness will ensure a much greater and longer lasting happiness.

Why join a leisure club in September?

It gets towards Christmas and many people stop thinking about them and start to pout their focus on Christmas, others and quite often partying.  Their thoughts about their health, losing weight, getting fit go out the window with a thought in the back of their heads that it will be OK because they "will give it ago in the New Year"

We suggest this is entirely the wrong approach for a number of key reasons:

1) It is common knowledge (as we have all tried it) New Year resolutions don't work!  The clock strikes 12 midnight, we all sing and dance and then make a pledge "I'm going to be healthy, eat well, train and get fit". Sometime you can add give up smoking & drink less alcohol but by mid January the large majority have given up on the quests and fallen back into their normal ways.
2) A lifestyle change is not a gimmick so don’t start a program with that mind-set.  A healthy lifestyle is not a fad diet!! If set out with the aim of making short term fixes you will end very short of your goal.  A healthier body has to be a fundamental lifestyle change in the way you think.  It may only involve small changes but you have to think big.
3) There is less pressure on you to achieve if you start now.  If everyone is doing it as with January there is more pressure on you to get results, you are pitting yourself against everyone else in the same boat as you.   

5) Everyone is in the gym in January, so if you are a bit nervous and unsure the gym is likely to be quite an intimidating place.  The fact that a large majority of those there with you are feeling the same won't register.  Join when its quieter and you will be a seasoned pro by January.
5) Imagine how good you will feel in your party dress or suit for those Christmas parties - EVERYONE would be commenting how good you look.  Just think, all those people you havn't see since last Christmas that you could show off your new found figure to!
6) Its a great way to counter all those additional calories you are about to consume over the next 2 months, better lose them straight away before they hit the hips?

FINALLY

You never know you might also enjoy it? Radical thought we know but some people actually do.

Swimming at Breadsall Priory

Come along to Breadsall Priory and make the most out of all our facilities including our swimming pool. Swimming is a brilliant way to exercise and because water is about 800 times denser than air you can work hard and burn more calories than out of water. Because swimming uses so many different muscles your heart and lungs must work hard to supply them with oxygen. Swimming can support up to 90% of the body’s weight in water meaning those of you that might have any disabilities or illness such as arthritis can take part in a comfortable environment.

Swimming is a brilliant all round body workout and particularly good for your core strength, the constant kicking in the water will give your legs a brilliant workout and will vastly improve your cardiovascular fitness.  It is a fantastic way to get that toned beach body that many people desire, it will improve your strength and it is statistically proven that people experience less tension, anger and depression after a good swim. I have personally used the pool for the last year at Breadsall Priory and the results I have seen from it have been very encouraging.

Corey Hodgkinson

Method, Load and Intensity

Two of the most common things we hear on the gym floor are ‘I want to lose weight and tone up’ and ‘I want to build muscle and tone up’ first of all toning is a myth, the principle is incorrect, the toning of muscle is an illusion, we can increase and decrease muscle mass and we can increase and decrease body fat percentage, toning is what we see when we increase muscle mass and decrease body fat percentage.
So how do we hit these goals, I use the same method, compound moves, also known as multi joint movements, such as squats, dead lifts, bench press and rows. The reason these exercises are so great is because they use large muscles we require a huge calorie burn to fuel the movements which means great for fat loss. Also sticking with compound moves from a muscle building point is good because lifting heavy through compound moves increases testosterone and HGH (Human Growth Hormone) release, which results in increased gains in muscle mass.
So if you’re looking to slim down or bulk up its time to focus on those compound moves, for either gain the method is the same (compound lifts) what we change is load and intensity, if you’re looking to get ‘toned’ and drop body fat perform your compounds moves in a circuit, focus on challenging but achievable weights, with a high intensity and little rest. If the building of muscle is your goal then stick to a move hypotrophy based training using a heavy weight with between 12-15 reps, lifting heavy, increasing load and strength, taking adequate rest to ensure maximum lifting capability and remembering never to sacrifice technique for weight.

For the first week or two practice compound moves focusing on technique and range of movement then start to use appropriate weights. Happy lifting!

a few compound moves are: squats, dead lift, pull up, press up, bench press, bent over row, squat snatch.

Golf Fitness

As the winter months draw closer and closer now is the time for you golfers to hit the gym. Whether it’s to improve your flexibility, increase your core stability or simply maintain your fitness over winter, why not let one of our trainers devise a Golf Specific Fitness Program designed to you.

Good flexibility will improve your stroke play maximizing the efficiency of your swing, Strong core stability will enable proper position and control in your swing meaning you hit the ball further and straighter than before. All top professional golfers now participate in a fitness/conditioning regime to keep them competing at the top.

Our personal trainer Simon also offers 1:1 Golf Personal Training and Group Golf Personal Training to get you fitter, stronger and more importantly get your handicap down

http://www.ptonthenet.com/articles/Performance-Training-for-Golf---Part-2-3240

To find out more read the article above all book in today to see the great benefits training will have on your game.

Why Don't More Guys Take Fitness Classes?

Why is it that every time you look into a class studio you see mostly or only women? Why are guys so afraid of doing a fitness class? In my experience of teaching a range of fitness classes at Breadsall Priory, from circuits to pump fx, kettlercise and even postural and stretch classes I have noticed that if you were to take the top ten percent of the fittest members we having training the majority are women. Their fitness, strength, skill and adaptability is far greater and that’s not just in regards to aerobic fitness and flexibility, I’m also talking about strength and technique, the best lifters at dead lifts, squats and lunges are all women, the guys are getting left behind, which is odd because most guys entering the gym have similar goals, ‘I want to lose my gut and build some muscle’ and most men have only ever dabbled with resistance work usually with a friend, they lift a few dumb bells, swing a few curls and force out a few dozen old school sit ups.
Now let’s look at the class formats, most classes on our timetable are all centred on fitness, weight loss and muscle building (or toning) which is what most people are always after, men quite often think that they need to do very heavy weights and have long rest periods to build muscle, which is simply not the case. In circuit classes, pumpfx and blastfx classes the start is always focused on technique, you can’t lift heavy until you can lift correctly. After the proper form has been developed we can start increasing load and intensity which will see that reduction in body fat and the building of some very functional muscle. Another great thing about classes is you have a trainer there with you, checking your form, showing you correct technique and coaching you through a whole variety of different movements and exercises, remember you don’t need to train longer you need top train smarter!
The fitness industry is changing and fast, the old school of pumping iron and three sets of ten is becoming less and less of a focal point, now it’s about looking the part and being able to walk the walk, you have to put that muscle to the test, I bulging pair of biceps is good for filling out a t shirt, but when your little sister starts beating you silly on the pull up bar maybe it’s time to drop into a few classes and learn some real gym skills.
So don’t be shy gentlemen book onto some classes and try something new, in one week you could sample a dozen different classes with more and half a dozen different instructors, that’s a lot of skill and knowledge just ready for the taking, so get involved before the women of Breadsall Priory show us up even more!

Written by Karl O'Sullivan Group Fitness Instructor and Personal Trainer

Exercise isn’t just about how you look

Exercise not only makes you feel better about yourself, I exercise regularly and it makes me feel great afterwards. It helps out in everyday life, the fitter you are just from increasing your heart rate from day to day activities such as running for the bus and going up and down the stairs without running out of breath has a huge effect on your life. Airports can be daunting places if you don’t have much upper body strength, lifting your suitcase off the platform can be too much for those who don’t use their upper body enough. This is why it is important you get the balance between cardiovascular training and muscular strength training, looking good will therefore become a bonus.

Our bodies are designed to work quite vigorously and without regular movement nothing works properly. Think back before people had office jobs and microwaves were invented, people had to chase down their own dinner, dig for their own vegetables and climb tress for their fruit this has all changed now and for this reason it is essential you keep your body active.

There are many health benefits from regular exercise, osteoporosis is prevented, you will have much more energy, sleep better, depression is at a lower risk and it also slows the onset of dementia.

Keep active and let’s enjoy exercise, here at Breadsall Priory we have a huge range of classes available including

: Yoga

: Circuits

: Boot camp

: Hydro

: Legs Bums and Tums

: Stretch and relax                         

and many more!

Along with a well equipped gymnasium with fully qualified gym instructors and personal trainers on hand to offer you help and guidance.

Corey Hodgkinson

Tyre Flipping, Method To The Madness

At Breadsall Priory we love to keep up to date and different training methods, old and new and we love getting outdoors with our training. We have recently acquired Tractor tyres, heavy duty for that king of total body exercises, the tyre flip! A few people have questioned what exactly it is we are doing and why, not to mention what the benefits are, so let’s quickly discuss.

The tyre flip is basically using the same lifting technique as a dead lift, you stand toes to the tyre, bend the knees, send the hips back and take hold of the bottom of the tyre with an under hand grip (as opposed to the standard over hand grip in a barbell dead lift) then keeping a strong and neutral spine you drive up through the heels and stand tall, that’s you your dead lift, but with the tyre you keep lifting greater engaging your arms and as soon as the tyre is standing upright you push it down powerfully to the floor and then repeat. So the tyre flip engages just about every muscle in the body and recruits more muscle activation of the core, biceps and triceps than your standard dead lift.
Our trainers also use different adaptation to make the exercise more fun, Karl said ‘I like to perform the tyre flip and then jump into the center of the tractor tyre and back out, turn around and keep repeating, it gives a really good lower abdominal workout and pushes your agility and staying power’
whilst instructing in the Saturday morning bootcamp Corey explained how ‘the tyre flip is really good because it’s tough, you never have to worry about equipment getting damaged and because we have more than one tractor tyre I like to get people racing, because it’s so different to what they usually do they really focus and don’t think about how hard they’re working and when you bring in that element of competition people really dig deep and push hard’

The outdoor training is something to look forward to and will be available for those attending Bootcamp sessions or looking for one to one personal training.

Bosu Session

This session today focused on using the Bosu for the majority of the exercises. The Bosu is an excellent tool to use with all clients incorporating core stability to an exercise. The client performed squats, bicep curls and a shoulder press all standing on the Bosu. This made sure the client activated her core throughout the exercises to enable her to keep good technique and maintain posture throughout.

As well as standing on the Bosu performing exercises,  she also did ¾ press up with her hands holding onto the Bosu and a plank positioning her forearms on the bosu (see pic). Again with a press up this makes sure the core is engaged throughout and increasing the intensity to a basic plank. She also performed no crunches or stomach exercises during her session today yet because we used the Bosu to perform some basic exercise her core got a really good challenging workout.

 Bosu Crunch

I strongly recommend using a Bosu as part of your fitness program whether working as a Personal Trainer or training on your own. Get out there and try it!

Why not try the exercises shown on the link below

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M8mcHyfFvQI&noredirect=1

Foam rolling

We all experience after a heavy gym session DOMS, the satisfying yet some times problematic Delayed Onset of Muscle Soreness, problematic in the sense that it can be hard to get back in the gym the next day if you’re feeling as stiff as a board. You may have notice in the gym the Foam Rollers and wondered what they are all about? Firstly roll away any tension and then stretch out the muscles. The idea is to teach your body how your muscles should sit and prevent any posture and subsequent joint problems says. You can use the rollers every day if needed and here are some roller basics

.

For tight thighs

Use the plank position and rest your thighs on the foam roller. Lift your toes so that all your bodyweight is on your elbows then shift one leg on top of the other so that a single thigh takes all the weight. Slowly roll up and down the thigh massaging any tight areas. Switch legs and repeat.

For a tight upper-back

Lie back on a foam roller placed around shoulder blade level. Keep your feet and bum in contact with the floor and your hands behind your head at all times. Tense your stomach as you slowly work the roller up and down your upper back.

For a tight chest

Use the plank position again and rest your right pectoral muscle on the roller. Hold your right arm out to the side and off the ground. Your weight should now largely be on the right side of your chest, use the length of the roller to massage the whole pectoral muscle.

You can always increase your attention to sore muscles by taking time out in the Jacuzzi after a gym session or booking in for a sports massage

 

Kettle bells: old kit, new tricks

New classes are on the way and one of those is Kettlercise, kettle bell training has been around for many years, believed to have been developed in Russia in the 1700s, but they are ever growing in popularity around the world, almost every new workout involves some element of kettle bells due to the great calorie burn and work load it puts on not just strength but also cardiovascular fitness. Kettle bells can be used for total body toning within classes using lighter bells as well as going heavy and being used to develop fearsome strength and muscle mass whilst maintaining low levels of body fat percentage. Kettle bells involve exercises to build strength and endurance, particularly in the lower back, legs, and shoulders, and increase grip strength. The basic movements, such as the swing, snatch, and the clean and jerk, engage the entire body at once, and translate to functional fitness for real world activities. It is also worth noting how well kettle bell training can be incorporated into circuit training along with other fundamental movements for a truly challenging gym session and because kettle bell training relies on continuous movement it makes for a very time efficient workout, as many trainers say ‘train smarter, not longer’

feel up for a challenge try this kettle bell routine and compare it to your usual routine, (using a kettle bell between 6-12kg aiming for 15 reps of each exercise)

kettle bell swing 15
high swing  15
snatch 15 (15 each arm)
press ups 15
hammer curl to shoulder press 15
weighted reach over toe touch 15

rest 2-3min
repeat 5 times

                                                         

workout by Karl O'Sullivan

Have you considered Sports and Remedial Massage?

If you’re like most people, you’ve had a sore neck or back after sitting too long at a desk, or you’ve had slight knee pain after a long run or cycle.  Perhaps you’ve noticed a decrease in your range of movement or that it seems to take you longer to recover from a training session. This is where sport and remedial massage therapy comes in.

During a treatment we work to identify the specific muscles and muscle groups that cause your day to day discomfort or impede your athletic performance.  I use manual therapy techniques to release tension in muscles and restore balance – not only where you feel pain but also in areas of tension that contribute to your problem.  The techniques we use include myofascial release, muscle energy techniques and soft tissue and trigger pointing. These techniques work deep into your muscles and soft tissue easing out those areas of tension effectively reducing those aches and pains.

In each session I will work with you with the aim to help you understand the factors influencing your discomfort.  Not only do I want to remedy the problem but also help you understand ways to help prevent its reoccurrence. Most sessions include advice on stretching, posture, or an activity you can do that will help your specific issue.

Sports and remedial massage therapy focuses on soft tissue aspects of problems, such as muscle and connective tissue.  This means that if your problem has an additional, non-soft-tissue related element, you may need to see someone else in addition to or instead of us, such as your GP, a physiotherapist, osteopath, or other health professional.  You can rest assured that if I’m not seeing the progress I  would expect I will suggest you see someone else as appropriate, and I’m happy to provide updates and progress reports to or coordinate treatments with other practitioners.

If you are interested or would like more information please ask at the leisure reception for Zoe our Sports Therapist.

What is Tabata Training?

So many people ask, how can I get in shape quick? Or how can I drop weight quick? It seems the quicker the better in many cases and there is a one word answer, Tabata!
so next question, what is tabata training? It was researched and developed by Dr. Izumi Tabata and his colleagues at the National Institute of Health and Nutrition. The training developed was based around very high energy and intense burst of activity with short recovery and then repeating, such as interval training, except the key with tabata training is you choose a training method which rope in as many muscles as you can and requires maximum effort, then you give it all you’ve for the twenty seconds, it has to be relentless and without pause. The training works well with such things as sprints, rowing, swimming  or heavy punch bag work, you can even expand to compound lifts such as heavy bag work, where you not only lift with speed and power, you also slam the heavy bag back down to earth and repeat.
through tabata training it was found that athletes tested has an increased' VO2 max (the point at which they get winded)  14% in six weeks. According to the journal of Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 6 to 8 very hard 20 second intervals with 10 second rest periods may be one of the best possible training protocols.

Your resting metabolism is higher in the few hours immediately after exercise as your body adapts to the stresses of the workout. Tabata routines burn more calories than a longer, easier, session. As your resting metabolism burns predominantly fat, this means you get fitter and leaner with less training, that’s good news to many!

The basics of Tabata training is 20 seconds flat out, 10 seconds easy and repeat.

The routine

Warm up Ten minutes easy shadow boxing or jogging on the spot.

Work period  squat down until your thighs are level with the floor, then explode upwards, leaping as high as you can then land controlled and lightly. Repeat for 20 seconds.

Recovery period jog for 10 seconds.

Repeat eight times this method isn’t for the faint of heart, but its simple in principle and yields great results, so if time is of the essence and you want those gains fast then follow the wisdom of  Dr. Izumi Tabata.

Good luck.


Karl O’Sullivan